William Lawson
And there was the cenote…
And there was the cenote…
William Lawson
Ni Chac - A Yucatan Bourdain Moment
Ni Chac - A Yucatan Bourdain Moment
William Lawson
Hacienda Chochoh, a Dog, and some Flowers

Doggies, hacienda and flowers

Hacienda Chochoh, a Dog, and some Flowers
Destinations
William Lawson
Wild Lunch at Codornejo - Akil, Yucatan

…wild lunch in Akil Yucatan…

Wild Lunch at Codornejo - Akil, Yucatan
William Lawson
Los Chocantes Caves - Revisited
Los Chocantes Caves - Revisited

Sisal for the Day

A day trip to the beach.

Who doesn’t love a few hours on the beach? Sun, sand, the ocean, and a cute little town to visit. And yes, a ceviche and freshly fried fish to go along with an ice-cold cerveza. Even a little street art in the form of murals. All within an hour’s drive of the formerly white city of Merida.

Sisal was once the main port of the Yucatan (after Campeche was turned over to the Campechnos and before Progreso) and all kinds of goods were shipped from here to Cuba. Including, tragically, Mayan slaves to work on Cuban sugar plantations. Yes, many a fancy Yucatecan surname is associated with the traffic of human beings somewhere down their lineage, contributing to their wealth and stature. A dark part of history glossed over by the brochures.

There is construction on the road between Hunucma and Sisal at the time of this writing so take it easy - you will make it even if you have to slow down a bit here and there. The highway “improvements” will increase traffic to this gem of a beach, thereby probably ruining it in the foreseeable future, so take advantage of the fact that it’s not completed just yet and go NOW.

We can get you there and ensure you have a great day on a private tour just for you and yours. No strangers to clog up the experience. No time limits, we go as long as you like. We do what YOU want!

Contact us here and we’ll set it up!

Inspired by Netflix: a Trip to Yaxunah and a Visit with Rosalia Chay

Yaxunah Chef Rosalia Chay Chuc and her famous box keken (hairless pig) cochinita pibil. Out of this world!

Yaxunah Chef Rosalia Chay Chuc and her famous box keken (hairless pig) cochinita pibil. Out of this world!

Inspired and motivated by having seen her on an episode of Netflix Chef’s Table BBQ series, I decided that this was definitely a destination worth checking out as someplace new and different we could visit, and the promise of exquisite food made the decision so much easier.

Yaxunah is a tiny village about 25 minutes from the world-famous Chichen Itzá, where you are immersed in the peaceful feel of a Mayan village, and far removed from the crushing commercial activity, the mercenary official and unofficial guides, the nauseating noise of jaguar whistles and a million trampling feet of red-faced tourists from Cancun.

In Yaxunah you can feel time slow down; you can breathe in the oppressive oxygen-laden air of the lush vegetation everywhere and appreciate friendly locals who immediately smile and return a wave.

An amazing roofless church in town. No mention of it’s history anywhere on the many sites that offer info on Yaxunah. Caste War? Rain? Gilberto? If anyone knows what happened to this church, let me know!

There is a Mayan archeological site within walking or biking distance from the village, blessedly free of a gift shop, an INAH marker or a ticket booth. Villagers administer the site and sell a few locally made wares including honey on the grounds. There are no ridiculously translated-into-English signs like there are at Uxmal or Chichen. “Not Rise to Structures” is not on display here and you can explore at your own pace or hire someone local, if you prefer. The site is small, but interesting and includes a ball court as well as other platforms and altars, for the most part reconstructed. There is jungle everywhere and on a pandemic kind of visit, with few other humans around there are bird as well to be observed.

While there, I observed a couple arrive on a motorcycle. They dismounted and began to climb the largest structure, a pyramid-like altar about 20 meters or more high. Thinking they were up to some romantic hany panky I made a remark to that effect to one of the caretakers.

“No” he corrected me. “Están subiendo para hacer una llamada”.

That’s how I found out about an interesting function of the highest structure at Yaxunah: it is used as a telephone “booth” as it has cell phone reception when there isn’t any down below, including in the town.

Here are some quick shots of the Mayan site of Yaxunah from October 2020, day of my visit (text continues below):

In the town there is a spectacular cenote surrounded by a true jungle of trees and vines and stone stairs heading down to the water, which was high at the time of my visit. There is also an attractive cultural center that, for the time being is shut down to avoid any COVID-related issues, where one can learn about the history of the area (think Caste War drama) as well as the culinary prowess of the local cooks.

Speaking of food, the trip here was inspired by Rosalia Chay, a local chef who was “discovered” by Merida celebrity chef Roberto Solis of Nectar fame, who was in the area scouting for ingredients and meat in particular. His visit prompted more visits from other chefs and one thing led to another and a Netflix crew showed up and filmed a segment, catapulting her into instant worldwide recognition.

She still cooks for regular mortals like us and so we took in the full experience, from visiting her hair-free piglets to digging up chachak waj (tamales) cooked underground and savoring the exquisite flavor of her cochinita pibil and relleno negro. She is happy to share her knowledge with anyone who asks and like a proper Mayan lady, wastes no time with useless banter.

“Can we buy some of the tamales to take home?”

“No, those are for the family”

“OK”

The pib, an underground cooking pit that is typical here is where the magic happens and she uses branches of the pixoy tree to add the smoky flavor to the foods cooked among the hot stones of the pib. As a visitor, if you are so inclined you can help uncover the cooking pit and extract the goodies waiting for you, hot, fragrant and delicious. Everything she makes from scratch and her own property, from the pork to the salsas to the refreshing agua de lima to accompany your meal, taken in what used to be her home, a thatched palapa now set up as a dining room with pretty ceramic plates and colorful table runners on a communal table.





Ni Chac - A Yucatan Bourdain Moment

Have you ever had one of those moments where you feel just a tiny little bit like Anthony Bourdain? I had one, just last week.

It was on my latest twice a month pilgrimage to one of the local villages where my tour company has enlisted the services of families to provide meals for our guests when we tour them out that way. I had just finished unloading supplies from the trunk of my car when the lady of the house asked if I wanted to try something special.

“Acabamos de regresar del monte y recogimos estos” Marisela said. Monte is the word Yucatecans term for the local underbrush and scrub forest that covers much of the northern part of the dry, rocky peninsula. She held up a oval-shaped, flat panal which looked like a beehive except, she explained, this one was made by a particular kind of wasp. This wasp reproduces in the hive - these hang vertically from the trunks of trees - and the larvae, those white things sticking out of each of the little holes, are what one is after.

After carefully removing them from the trees, making sure not to get stung by any wasps flitting about and not breaking them, she and Leo, her husband, had put them in her plastic market bag aka her sabucan and brought them to the house. There, she lit a small fire in what is essentially a homemade barbeque grill and with the heat of the coals (no direct flame) she toasted the hives which loosens the larvae and these are pulled out, one by one and put in a bowl. And there they gather, in all their delicate, white, larva-y goodness in the bowl. A quick toasty trip across the heat of the comal, a hot metal griddle, to give them a golden, slightly crisped-around-the-edges look, and they are ready to eat. I should mention that the teen-aged boys charged with patiently picking out the larvae, their fingertips blackened from where the hive had been slightly charred, were popping them into their mouths like grapes.

Except these were most definitely not grapes.

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Without overthinking it too much, I grabbed some between my thumb and forefinger, and popped about three of them into my mouth and chewed. To paraphrase a sommelier, the flavor was subtle with hints of nut, smoke and the texture was squishy between my teeth. I put the recurring thought of worms in my mouth out of my mind.

I swallowed.

Then it was time to savor the complete dish, with lime juice, tomato and onion - ceviche style - in fresh corn tortillas. It was a marvelous, simple meal. “Ni chac” said my hostess. This was the name of the dish and yes, it was something special that wasn’t available year-round. “Por las lluvias, hay muchos panales” added Leo, glancing up briefly from his work, indicating that the recent heavy rains had increased the number of hives in the monte.

While I ate, the parents, teenagers and even the littlest kids continued their work of removing the larvae from the hives and chatted in Mayan. I understood nothing except a word or two and when suddenly everyone erupted in laughter, I asked what was so funny. A family story. The ex-husband of one of the daughters, who had come to visit his children, had been offered this simple meal and had reacted angrily, claiming to be offended at having been offered such a lowly dish. They thought it was funny that the gringo was eating it while the other man had found it beneath him.

"People are generally proud of their food. A willingness to eat and drink with people without fear and prejudice… they open up to you in ways that somebody visiting who is driven by a story may not get." - Anthony Bourdain -

When someone offers you food, you accept it. With pleasure and with respect. As Bourdain pointed out, it is part of a bigger picture. And although I was not there looking for a story, it certainly brought me that much closer to the people I was sharing this food with.

On Despensas

One of the words you might see if you are researching on how to help here in Mexico, is the term “despensa”

"Despensa" literally means "pantry" and in Mexico when there is an emergency or when you are feeling charitable, like at Christmas, you give people a despensa. ONG’s and government agencies often hand out despensas to families in need and they can also be seen during political campaigns (although this is now illegal) to garner favor with recipients of the “generosity” But we won’t get into that here.

Typically a despensa is made up of basic foodstuffs, some hygiene and cleaning products, usually enough for a week for a small family of maybe four people or so.

This is what a typical despensa looks like, to help people get through the crisis at hand. Basic food stuffs like bouillion cubes, cooking oil, tomato paste, beans, rice, pasta, tuna and crackers. Some TP and some soap. This is the kind of despensa …

This is what a typical despensa looks like, to help people get through the crisis at hand. Basic food stuffs like bouillion cubes, cooking oil, tomato paste, beans, rice, pasta, tuna and crackers. Some TP and some soap. This is the kind of despensa handed out by ONG’s and government agencies who have hundreds and hundreds of people to help out.

With the help of our generous donors, we are able to provide a solid supply of basics to our families in need. In addition our guides and drivers also receive the benefits of the love shown by people who have donated.

THANK YOU!

See the photos below to get an idea of what “your” despensas look like:

In the photos above, you can see some of what we are delivering. Below, a short video of more of where our money is going for donations. Some of this is for the families, some for Lawson’s guides and drivers.